Washburn's General Store

Established in 1831, the five-generation family business has been handed down from founder Benjamin Washburn, through brothers & sons, to his great-great nephew Edward Nollie Washburn III.

The National Department of the Interior inducted the General Store, the family estate–built in 1913, a classic wooden barn–built in 1915, and ten other buildings as a historic district in 2002.

The Store’s original building actually stood on the other side of Washburn’s Crossroads to its current home. It began as a tavern, inn, and mercantile store that served stagecoaches traveling between Rutherford and Lincoln counties.

Today the store is a testament to American history. Come enjoy a glass bottle of Coca-Cola, and have a pleasant chat with the proprietor. You can cozy up with a North Carolina afghan and rock away your worries in a NC-made rocking chair.